The New York Times (11/30, Baumgaertner) says that according to a new CDC report, “the rate of suicides involving guns in the United States has reached the highest level since officials began tracking it more than 50 years ago.” Notably, “about 27,000 of 50,000 suicides were carried out by gun in 2022,” with the rise “significantly steeper” in some racial and ethnic groups. CDC researchers “suggested that the coronavirus pandemic might have exacerbated many of the known risk factors for suicide generally, which include social isolation, strained relationships, and drug and alcohol disorders.”

Related Links:

— U.S. Rate of Suicide by Firearm Reaches Record Level,” Emily Baumgaertner, New York Times, November 30, 2023

MedPage Today (11/29, Firth) reports, “Antipsychotic medication-related deaths were rare among children, but young adults on higher doses had a significantly increased risk of death, according to a U.S. national retrospective cohort study of Medicaid patients.” In the study, “those ages 18 to 24 had increased risk of death with current use of second-generation antipsychotic agents in daily doses of greater than 100-mg chlorpromazine equivalents compared with control medications including antidepressants and mood stabilizers, reported” researchers in JAMA Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— MedPage Today (requires login and subscription)

Psychiatric News (11/29) says, “The prevalence of U.S. veterans diagnosed with cannabis use disorder more than doubled between 2005 and 2019, with the greatest increases reported among those with bipolar disorder and psychotic spectrum disorders, according to a report published…in The American Journal of Psychiatry,” a publication of the American Psychiatric Association. In the study, “researchers analyzed electronic health records from the Veterans Health Administration collected from 2005 to 2014 and 2016 to 2019.”

Related Links:

— “Cannabis Use Disorder Rising Among Veterans, Study Finds,” APA Psychiatric News Alert, November 29, 2023

CNN (11/29, McPhillips) reports, “More people died from suicide in the United States last year than any other year on record, dating to at least 1941, according to provisional data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.” More than “49,449 lives were lost due to intentional self-harm in 2022 – more than 14 deaths for every 100,000 people.”

However, “provisional data from 2022 shows signs of improvement in rates among children and teens. The suicide rate for children ages 10 to 14 dropped 18% in 2022, to about 2 deaths for every 100,000 children, and the rate among those ages 15 to 24 fell 9% to about 14 deaths for every 100,000 people.”

Related Links:

— “Suicide deaths reached a record high in the US in 2022, despite hopeful decreases among children and young adults,” Deidre McPhillips, CNN, November 29, 2023

Healio (11/28, Rhoades) reports, “Food insecurity was linked to an increased risk for dementia and faster memory decline among older adults, according to a study.” The data also indicated that “those with food insecurity were typically younger and had lower educational attainment than those with food security.” The findings were published in JAMA Network Open.

Related Links:

— “Food insecurity associated with dementia risk,” Andrew Rhoades, Healio, November 28, 2023